Jones Apparel Group announced it has begun a pilot program in Nine West stores to test radio frequency identification (RFID) technology at the item level. The company is seeking to determine what impact item level tracking will have on productivity, customer service and inventory management.
"We are eager to begin this test to explore the benefits that RFID can provide in our retail footwear locations," said Norm Veit, Executive Vice President, MIS at Jones, in a press release. "RFID has interested us for some time, and we believe it has reached the point where launching a pilot program of this nature makes sense. We are also pleased to be working with our chosen partners on this project, and we look forward to the support and expertise we are confident they will provide."
Sergio Prosperino, senior vice president, store operations at Nine West, said, "We are intrigued by the prospect of enhanced inventory visibility, and we think this can be of real value to our customers and store associates."
Jones is working with Avery Dennison, inCode Wireless, Motorola's Enterprise Mobility Business and Vue Technology as technology partners in the test.
The Jones test follows in the steps of American Apparel, which tagged all items sold in its New York City stores last November. According to a report on the STORES magazine website, the company is expanding item-level tagging to its locations in the New York area and another store in Santa Monica, Cal. It will follow by eventually rolling out the technology to all its North American locations.
Zander Livingston, who led the RFID test for American Apparel, believes that it's time to go for it when it comes to item level tagging. "We hear about a lot of people saying that they're waiting for the costs [of RFID] to come down, but I think that's just a mask," he said. "It's not that expensive; I think really it's about waiting to see if somebody else steps up first."
Discussion Questions: Is the time right for RFID at the item level? What do you think Jones Apparel and Nine West will discover from the testing the companies will do? Is the tag cost impediment still a major issue preventing more widespread adoption of RFID or are there other more serious factors getting in the way?